Posted on: September 6, 2024, 02:43h.
Last updated on: September 6, 2024, 02:43h.
The 2024 Missouri sports betting ballot referendum scheduled for the Nov. 5 election remains in jeopardy.
Cole County Circuit Court Judge Daniel Green could hand down his ruling at any moment after hearing testimony yesterday about whether a ballot referendum campaign submitted enough qualified signatures to place the sports betting question before voters.
In August, Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R) announced that his office had validated more than enough signatures from registered voters. Ashcroft said the ballot committee — Winning for Missouri Education — also met the state’s rule that signatures be obtained from at least 8% of the votes cast during the most recent gubernatorial election in six of the state’s eight congressional districts.
Following Amendment 2 being moved to the 2024 ballot, a lawsuit was filed on allegations that Ashcroft’s office wrongly validated thousands of signatures. The plaintiffs additionally claimed that Ashcroft used an outdated congressional district map in determining the number of signatures needed in each congressional district.
Two Missouri residents brought the sports betting lawsuit.
Winning for Missouri Education is funded by DraftKings and FanDuel. The state’s four major professional sports franchises — the NFL Kansas City Chiefs, MLB Kansas City Royals, NHL St. Louis Blues, and MLB St. Louis Cardinals — have also helped finance the committee.
Ashcroft, who was defeated in the Republican Party’s 2024 gubernatorial primary, is accused of wrongly certifying at least 750 signatures in Missouri’s First Congressional District. Plaintiffs’ counsel brought in a handwriting expert who testified on Thursday that he had concerns about many signatures that Ashcroft’s office said were legitimate when compared to voting record signatures.
Tuesday is the deadline for Missouri ballots to be amended. Green rejected a motion to dismiss the lawsuit from attorneys representing Winning for Missouri Education but pledged to issue a speedy verdict in time for the election ballots to be amended if needed.
As of now, Missouri voters will be asked if they support allowing the state’s 13 riverboat casinos to operate retail sportsbooks and a single online skin each.
The referendum additionally seeks to amend the Missouri Constitution to allow the state’s professional sports stadiums and venues to obtain in-person and online sports gambling privileges. Up to two online sportsbooks not tethered to a riverboat or sports venue would also be allowed should Amendment 2 find majority support.
Recent polling on Amendment 2 shows the outcome could be razor-thin.
Missourians are also set to decide if they want to expand riverboat gaming to the Osage River. Currently, gaming boats are restricted to the Missouri and Mississippi rivers.
Ashcroft’s office initially said the referendum campaign from a group called Osage River Gaming & Convention was about 2,000 validated signatures short of moving the question forward. But after a lawsuit was filed, Ashcroft told the presiding court that clerical errors resulted in a submitted batch of canvassing documents being overlooked. Once those were recovered, the campaign was determined to have met the threshold.
Osage River is seeking permission to build a riverboat resort and casino near the Bagnell Dam in Lake Ozark.
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